(b) In the case of any person who qualifies for a guarantee, the Commissioner of
Social Services, or any emergency shelter under contract with the Department of Social
Services to assist in the administration of the security deposit guarantee program established pursuant to subsection (a) of this section, may execute a written agreement to
pay the landlord for any damages suffered by the landlord due to the tenant's failure to
comply with such tenant's obligations as defined in section 47a-21, provided the amount
of any such payment shall not exceed the amount of the requested security deposit.
Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) of this section, if a person who has
previously received a grant for a security deposit or a security deposit guarantee becomes
eligible for a subsequent security deposit guarantee within eighteen months after a claim
has been paid on a prior security deposit guarantee, such person may receive a security
deposit guarantee. The amount of the subsequent security deposit guarantee for which
such person would otherwise have been eligible shall be reduced by (1) any amount of
a previous grant which has not been returned to the department pursuant to section 47a-21, or (2) the amount of any payment made to the landlord for damages pursuant to this
subsection.

(c) Any payment made pursuant to this section to any person receiving temporary
family assistance, aid under the state supplement program or state-administered general
assistance shall not be deducted from the amount of assistance to which the recipient
would otherwise be entitled.

(d) On and after July 1, 2000, no special need or special benefit payments shall be
made by the commissioner for security deposits from the temporary family assistance,
state supplement, or state-administered general assistance programs.

(e) The Commissioner of Social Services may, within available appropriations, on
a case-by-case basis, provide a security deposit grant to a person eligible for the security
deposit guarantee program established under subsection (a) of this section, in an amount
not to exceed the equivalent of one month's rent on such rental unit provided the commissioner determines that emergency circumstances exist which threaten the health, safety
or welfare of a child who resides with such person. Such person shall not be eligible for
more than one such grant without the authorization of said commissioner. Nothing in
this section shall preclude the approval of such one-month security deposit grant in
conjunction with a one-month security deposit guarantee.

(f) The Commissioner of Social Services may provide a security deposit grant to a
person receiving such grant through any emergency shelter under an existing contract
with the Department of Social Services to assist in the administration of the security
deposit program, but in no event shall a payment be authorized after October 1, 2000.
Nothing in this section shall preclude the commissioner from entering into a contract
with one or more emergency shelters for the purpose of issuing security deposit guarantees.

(g) The Commissioner of Social Services shall adopt regulations, in accordance
with the provisions of chapter 54, to administer the program established pursuant to this
section and to set eligibility criteria for the program, but may implement the program
until June 30, 2003, while in the process of adopting such regulations provided notice
of intent to adopt the regulations is published in the Connecticut Law Journal within
twenty days after implementation.

History: P.A. 87-455 amended Subsec. (a) by making persons having documented financial need who reside in emergency shelters or emergency housing eligible for grants and amended Subsec. (b) by authorizing emergency shelters under
contract with department of human resources to pay security deposit to landlords; Sec. 17-31jj transferred to Sec. 17-599
in 1991; P.A. 91-211 amended Subsec. (b) to allow the commissioner to enter into a written agreement with a landlord to
pay for certain damages if incurred in lieu of paying a security deposit, to require the reduction of any amount owed to the
department under the program by a grant recipient from any subsequent grant provided to the recipient and to require that
the issuance of grants and agreements for payment of damages in any fiscal year not exceed the amount available for the
program in that fiscal year; P.A. 93-262 authorized substitution of commissioner and department of social services for
commissioner and department of human resources, effective July 1, 1993; Sec. 17-599 transferred to Sec. 17b-802 in 1995;
June 18 Sp. Sess. P.A. 97-2 made technical and conforming changes, effective July 1, 1997; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 00-2
amended Subsec. (a) by changing program of grants to persons residing in emergency shelters or housing to security deposit
guarantee program for use in lieu of a security deposit, deleting reference to "public assistance", inserting provision re
recipients of temporary family assistance or aid under the state supplement program, adding provision re persons who
cannot remain in permanent housing due to any reason specified in Subsec. (a) of Sec. 17b-808, and making conforming
changes, amended Subsec. (b) by deleting provisions re payment of security deposit directly to the landlord, deleting
provision re annual amounts available in program, and making conforming changes, amended Subsec. (c) by adding
provision re persons receiving temporary family assistance or aid under the state supplement program, added new Subsecs.
(d) to (f), inclusive, re special need or special benefit payments and security deposit grants, redesignated former Subsec.
(d) as Subsec. (g) and amended said Subsec. by adding provision allowing for implementation of the program until January
1, 2002, while in the process of adopting regulations and making conforming and technical changes, effective July 1, 2000;
June Sp. Sess. P.A. 01-2 amended Subsec. (a) to expand program to persons served a notice to quit in summary process
action, to increase maximum amount from one to two months' rent, to delete provision re documented showing of financial
need and to require authorization for more than one guarantee "in any eighteen-month period", amended Subsec. (b) to
authorize eligibility for subsequent guarantee within eighteen months after claim has been paid and to make technical
changes, amended Subsec. (e) to delete provision re safety net account, to include person served a notice to quit in summary
process action and to add provision re approval of grant in conjunction with guarantee and amended Subsec. (f) to add
provision re contract for issuing security deposit guarantees; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 01-9 revised effective date of June Sp.
Sess. P.A. 01-2 but without affecting this section; P.A. 02-79 amended Subsec. (a) by inserting Subdiv. numbers and
Subpara. letters, adding Subpara. (B) in Subdiv. (2) to extend eligibility under the security deposit guarantee program to
persons having a rental assistance program or federal Section 8 certificate or voucher, and adding provision authorizing
Commissioner of Social Services to establish priorities for allocating security deposit guarantees, amended Subsec. (e) to
revise provisions re eligibility for security deposit grants, and amended Subsec. (g) by changing "January 1, 2002" to "June
30, 2003", effective July 1, 2002; P.A. 04-76 amended Subsecs. (a), (c) and (d) by deleting references to "general assistance"
and making conforming changes; P.A. 05-280 amended Subsec. (a) to provide that commissioner may deny eligibility for
security deposit guarantee program to an applicant who has made more than two claims in a five-year period, to add "in
order to administer the program within available appropriations" and to make technical changes, effective July 1, 2005;
June Sp. Sess. P.A. 05-3 amended Subsec. (a) by replacing "who has made more than two claims in a" with "for whom
the commissioner has paid two or more claims by landlords during the immediately preceding" re denial of eligibility,
effective July 1, 2005.

(b) Housing eligible for participation in the program shall comply with applicable
state and local health, housing, building and safety codes.

(c) In addition to an element in which rental assistance certificates are made available to qualified tenants, to be used in eligible housing which such tenants are able to
locate, the program may include a housing support element in which rental assistance
for tenants is linked to participation by the property owner in other municipal, state or
federal housing repair, rehabilitation or financing programs. The commissioner shall
use rental assistance under this section so as to encourage the preservation of existing
housing and the revitalization of neighborhoods or the creation of additional rental
housing.

(d) The commissioner may designate a portion of the rental assistance certificates
available under the program for tenant-based and project-based supportive housing
units. To the extent practicable rental assistance certificates issued for supportive housing shall adhere to the requirements of the federal Housing Choice Voucher Program,
42 USC 1437f(o), relative to calculating the tenant's share of the rent to be paid.

(e) The commissioner shall administer the program under this section to promote
housing choice for certificate holders and encourage racial and economic integration.
The commissioner shall establish maximum rent levels for each municipality in a manner
that promotes the use of the program in all municipalities. Any certificate issued pursuant
to this section may be used for housing in any municipality in the state. The commissioner
shall inform certificate holders that a certificate may be used in any municipality and,
to the extent practicable, the commissioner shall assist certificate holders in finding
housing in the municipality of their choice.

(f) Nothing in this section shall give any person a right to continued receipt of rental
assistance at any time that the program is not funded.

(g) The commissioner shall adopt regulations in accordance with the provisions of
chapter 54 to carry out the purposes of this section. The regulations shall establish
maximum income eligibility guidelines for such rental assistance and criteria for determining the amount of rental assistance which shall be provided to eligible families.

History: P.A. 86-384 extended program for one year, allowed commissioner to conduct program in more than three
towns and replaced term "rent subsidies" with "rental assistance"; P.A. 87-517 amended Subsec. (a) by deleting reference
to three-year pilot program, adding provisions making program applicable to elderly persons residing in state-assisted
rental housing for the elderly and changing income percentage from fifty to sixty per cent, amended Subsec. (b) by deleting
provisions re towns in which pilot program is conducted, amended Subsec. (c) by deleting reference to pilot program,
amended Subsec. (d) by deleting reference to pilot period, amended Subsec. (e) by adding provisions requiring regulations
establishing maximum income eligibility guidelines and criteria for determining amount of assistance, and amended Subsec.
(f) by deleting reference to pilot program; P.A. 91-362 inserted new Subsec. (d) to require the commissioner to administer
the program to promote housing choice and encourage racial and economic integration and added new Subsec. (h) to
require the commissioner to submit to the legislative committee on housing a report on the program, relettering previously
existing Subsecs. as necessary; P.A. 93-262 replaced commissioner of housing with commissioner of social services and
deleted Subsecs. (g) and (h) re reports to general assembly, effective July 1, 1993; Sec. 8-345 transferred to Sec. 17b-812
in 1995; P.A. 96-268 amended Subsec. (a) to change the income level threshold for a low-income family from sixty per
cent to fifty per cent of the median family income for the area of the state in which such family lives and amended Subsec.
(f) to provide that "effective November 1, 1995, the amount of assistance for elderly persons who are certificate holders
shall be the difference between thirty per cent of their adjusted gross income, less a utility allowance and the base rent",
effective July 1, 1996; June 18 Sp. Sess. P.A. 97-2 eliminated references to elderly persons in the program of rental
assistance, effective July 1, 1997; P.A. 05-280 added new Subsec. (d) re designating a portion of available rental assistance
certificates for supportive housing units and requiring that rental assistance certificates issued for such purpose adhere to
requirements of federal Housing Choice Voucher program and redesignated existing Subsecs. (d) to (f), inclusive, as new
Subsecs. (e) to (g), inclusive, effective July 1, 2005.